How did a travel lover transform from seeking excitement to contentment after becoming a mom?

3/10/2017

1. Solo traveling was so exciting when I was in my early 20s.

When I was in my early 20s, I thought every traveling was once in a lifetime event. I loved solo traveling. The beauty of solo traveling was offering you complete freedom to decide where to go, where to eat and where to stay. You made all the decisions to control your journey. Someone might warn you the possibility of danger, threat, and sometimes loneliness, but is there anything on earth can 100% guarantee for sure? I liked to experience the skydive jumping for 360 degrees bird-eye view of the magnificent landscape; or enjoyed the trekking and boating in Nepal; or followed the footsteps of ancient Inca in Machu Picchu, Peru. The adventure was out there. It represented fun, excitement, dangerous and risky.

Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go ~ T.S. Eliot

2. Traveling with friends when I was 30s. Excitement and contentment

I felt wonderful when traveling alone. As mention from an African proverb that “if you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together”. When I was in my early 30s, I loved to travel with buddies visiting Europe, South America, and Asia . Friendship is a source of happiness, isn’t it? Even though it was not funny to carry the heavy backpack, walking miles to the motel where there was no toilet flush, but it made a lot of difference to experience the good and bad from the adventure with my friend together. If your boyfriend was your travel-mate, it added more fun to your journey (but it would be a nightmare sometimes). It would be great to hang out on the street of Buenos Aires. I liked to see people dancing the tango out there, touching faces, man leading and woman following. They were so sexy that attracted you dancing with them together.

If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together ~ African proverb

3. Family travel when I was over 35s. Change from using the backpack to Samsonite. More contentment than excitement.

Family vacation has become our annual family event. Travel has meant an Easter egg-riddled journey for the kids, but for me, it means anxiety more than excitement. Right from the start planning and preparing for the journey, I can't get over the worries about non-refundable fares, tight schedule, security issues, or any other inconvenience unexpected things can be happened along the journey. The backpack has changed to Samsonite. Throughout the journey, the kids are talking non-stop, eating takes us longer than others. But when I find the kids are having so much fun, I feel the contentment come along with their laughs and smiles.